Intermediate B1

This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the B1 level. The language of instruction is Portuguese. I will speak in English only if needed.

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My suggestion* for these two weeks is to focus on:

  • Perfeito vs. imperfeito / Subjunctive mood (intro)
  • Reading and listening comprehension
  • Conversation

*There's always room to adjust the course according to the group's preferences:

After this course, you'll have come closer to the B1 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.

Not sure if you should enroll in the A2 or B1 course?

Take this placement test

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Clean Slate A0

Geared toward Absolute Beginners, this course gives you a solid start and foundation to build upon. The language of instruction is almost entirely in English.

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This is an introductory course to the Portuguese language as spoken in Portugal. Throughout the course, we will focus on the Portuguese sound system and basic Portuguese grammar.

You will also learn how to introduce yourself and day-to-day, useful phrases. Finally, we will discuss learning resources and strategies to support your learning journey.

After the course, you will have a basic understanding of European Portuguese pronunciation and grammar. You will also be capable of engaging in simple, short oral interactions. Last but not least, you will be aware of a variety of learning resources and strategies to help you succeed at learning the language.

Any questions?

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Beginners A2

This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the A2 level. The language of instruction is English/Portuguese, typically in a 35/65 ratio.

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My suggestion* for these two weeks is to focus on:

  • Prepositions
  • Past tense: perfeito vs. imperfeito
  • Listening comprehension and conversation

*There's always room to adjust the course according to the group's preferences:

After this course, you'll have come closer to the A2 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.

Not sure if you should enroll in the A2 or B1 course?

Take this placement test

Any questions?

Inquiry

Beginners A1

This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the A1 level. The language of instruction is English/Portuguese, typically in a 70/30 ratio.

If you've just started your learning journey, it may be that you will find this course a bit challenging. Nothing wrong with that.

However, if you think you'd have trouble coping with a challenging learning environment, consider enrolling for the Clean Slate A0 instead (if available).

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This is an all-round course, meaning that we’ll work on all aspects of language learning (at the A1 level):

  • Pronunciation
  • Listening comprehension
  • Reading comprehension
  • Conversation
  • Grammar

After this course, you'll have come closer to the A1 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.

Not sure if you should enroll in the A1 or A2 course?

Take this placement test

Any questions?

Inquiry

Surprise surprise!

Do you know what constipado means in Portuguese? Probably not what you are thinking...

Get a list of 50+ English-Portuguese False Friends and be surprised.

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INTENSIVE COURSES FALL '23 (Algarve) » Applications closing soon!

Struggling with Pronunciation?

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Online Courses in European Portuguese
Learn Portuguese through Short Stories

Portugiesische Wortbetonungen und Akzentzeichen

Wenn Ihnen die portugiesische Aussprache am Herzen liegt und Sie darin gut werden wollen, müssen Sie sich mit den Wortbetonungsmustern auseinandersetzen. Das ist es.

Hier ist die portugiesische Wortbetonung auf den Punkt gebracht: 

Portugiesische Wörter ohne Akzentzeichen werden entsprechend einigen Rechtschreibmustern entweder auf der letzten oder vorletzten Silbe betont. Andernfalls sind Wörter mit einem Akzent gekennzeichnet, der deutlich anzeigt, wo die Wortbetonung liegt (entweder auf der letzten, vorletzten oder drittletzten Silbe). 

Wie Englisch ist Portugiesisch eine Sprache mit betonter Betonung (im Gegensatz zu Sprachen mit betonter Silbe). In betont-zeitgesteuerten Sprachen sind die Zeitintervalle zwischen betonten Silben ziemlich konsistent. Dies führt zur Verkürzung und Reduzierung unbetonter Silben, sodass sie in relativ feste Zeitintervalle passen, die durch betonte Silben vorgegeben werden. 

Dadurch werden unbetonte Silben weniger deutlich ausgesprochen, betonte Silben hingegen deutlich hervorstechen. Daher ist die Wortbetonung im Portugiesischen auffällig und deutlich hörbar. Daraus folgt auch, dass Wortbetonung für alle, die ihre Aussprache verbessern möchten, von großer Bedeutung ist.

Wenn Sie tiefer in die Wortbetonung und das portugiesische Lautsystem im Allgemeinen eintauchen möchten, sollten Sie sich für diesen Kurs anmelden Portuguese Sounds – ein umfassender Kurs in europäischer portugiesischer Aussprache.

Get Your Pronunciation Right

1. By default – without accent marks

Without any accent mark, Portuguese words are normally stressed on either the next-to-last syllable or the last syllable. Let’s take a closer look at it. 

Word stress on the next-to-last syllable

Most commonly, Portuguese words are stressed on the next-to-last syllable. Here are a few examples:

  • momento > mo-men-to (moment)
  • peludo > pe-lu-do (hairy)
  • vezes > ve-zes (times)
  • diabo > di-a-bo (devil)
  • bastante> bas-tan-te (quite)
  • Carlos > Car-los (Carlos)
  • carente > ca-ren-te (needy)
  • . . .

Word stress on the last syllable

However, words ending in certain consonants, vowels, and diphthongs are stressed on the last one. Let’s look at the different subgroups of this category. 

Words ending in -r, -l or -z

Words ending with the consonants -r, -l or -z are stressed on the last syllable:

  • falar > fa-lar (talk)
  • beber > be-ber (drink)
  • anel > a-nel (ring)
  • tamboril > tam-bo-ril (monkfish)
  • rapaz > ra-paz (boy)
  • capuz > capuz (hood)
  • . . .

Words ending in -i or -u

Words ending with the vowels -i or -u ,  even with -is, -iz, us or uz,  are stressed on the last syllable:

  • compreendi > com-pre-en-di (I understood)
  • comi > co-mi (I ate)
  • peru > pe-ru (turkey)
  • menu > me-nu (menu)
  • aprendiz > a-pren-diz (apprentice)
  • anis > a-nis (anise)
  • avestruz > a-ves-truz (ostrich)
  • Jesus > Je-sus (Jesus)
  • . . .

Words ending in decrescent diphthongs

Words ending in diphthongs whose last vowel is either -i or -u (closed vowel sounds) – such as -ai, -au, -ei, eu, -iu, -ou or -ui are also stressed on the last syllable:

  • samurai > sa-mu-rai (samurai)
  • bacalhau > ba-ca-lhau (codfish)
  • consentirei > con-sen-ti-rei (I will allow)
  • Europeu > Eu-ro-peu (European)
  • fugiu > fu-giu (she ran away)
  • nadou > na-dou (she swam)
  • constitui > cons-ti-tui (it constituted)
  • . . .

Words ending in crescent diphthongs (diphthong or hiatus?)

These are words ending in vowel pairs whose first vowel is either -i or -u – such as -ia, -io, -ua, oruo.  In this case, it is not clear (depending on how you pronounce it) whether the vowels comprise a diphthong (one syllable) or a hiatus (two syllables). 

If we consider them to be diphthongs, then the word stress falls on the last syllable. Otherwise, they are said to be stressed on the second-to-last syllable (the one containing either -i or -u). A few examples: 

  • alegria > a-le-gri-a vs. a-le-gria (happiness)
  • casario > ca-sa-ri-o vs. ca-sa-rio (a group of houses)
  • amuo > a-mu-o vs. a-muo (sulkiness)
  • rua > ru-a vs. rua (street)
  • . . .

2. With accent marks

Every word that does not conform with the above-mentioned patterns will take an accent mark to indicate the stressed syllable. In Portuguese, there are four accent marks:

  • the acute accent (´) – used to signal the stressed syllable and an open vowel sound.
  • the circumflex accent (^) – used to signal the stressed syllable while indicating a more closed vowel sound (compared to the acute accent).
  • the tilde (~) – used to indicate word stress as well as a nasal vowel/diphthong sound. There are a few words that take both the tilde and the acute accent, for example, órgão (organ). In that case, the stress is indicated by the acute accent, while the tilde only stands for the nasal sound. 
  • the grave accent (`) – this accent does not indicate word stress; it only signals the contraction of the preposition a with feminine definite articles (a+a, a+as > à, às), and with certain demonstrative pronouns (e.g.,  a+aquele > àquele).

Let’s take a peek at a few different cases.

Word stress on the third-from-last syllable

Every single word that is stressed on the antepenultimate syllable takes, without exception, an accent on that same syllable: 

  • máquina >-qui-na (machine)
  • penúltimo > pe-núl-ti-mo (penultimate)
  • diabólico > di-a--li-co (diabolic)
  • apocalíptico > a-po-ca--pti-co (apocalyptic)
  • atómico > a-tó-mi-co (atomic)
  • . . .

Word stress on the second-to-last syllable

Without an accent mark, the following words would be stressed on the last syllable (according to the patterns explained above):

  • telemóvel > te-le-mó-vel (mobile phone)
  • ginásio > gi-ná-sio (gym)
  • búzio > bú-zio (conch)
  • águia > á-guia (eagle)
  • lápis >-pis (pencil)
  • grátis > grá-tis (free)
  • . . .

Word stress on the last syllable

Without an accent mark, the following words would by default be stressed on the second-to-last syllable (as explained at the beginning of this article):

  • pontapé > pon-ta-(kick)
  • irmã > ir-mã (sister)
  • chinês > chi-nês (Chinese)
  • avião > a-vi-ão (plane)
  • avó > a-(grandmother)
  • . . .

Stay tuned for upcoming courses, reads, and other novelties.

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